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Dr. Anthony
Youn is one of the US's top-ranked cosmetic surgeons, and
you've probably watched him on Rachael
Ray or seen his memoir, In Stitches. But
besides being one of the coolest doctors around, he's also an
inexhaustible fount of knowledge on all things cosmetic and
surgical. Here, Dr. Youn shares some big changes in the world of
cosmetic surgery we might just see in 2012. Check out the
interview after the jump.

BellaSugar: What are the most exciting developments in
cosmetic surgery we might see in 2012?Dr. Anthony Youn: Right now, the holy grail of
plastic surgery is fat removal without pain, without going under
the knife, and without downtime. One thing that's already out is
the Zerona; it's a laser system, and people can lose three or so
inches in two weeks. The only issue is that it's hard to predict
where the fat comes off. You can't target a particular
area.
There's also Zeltiq, which is a "cool sculpting" procedure that's
limited to love handles and tummy. On average, patients see a 25
percent reduction of fat, but again, you can only use it on those
two areas. So in 2012, we're hoping to see the FDA approve a
procedure called Ultrashape. It originated in Israel, and it's an
ultrasound device that can target fat all over the body, making
it a versatile alternative.

BellaSugar: What about popular injectables like Botox? Is
there anything big coming up there?Dr. Youn: As far as facial stuff goes, Xeomin is
new. It's another botulinum toxin, like Botox. And in fact, there
are a number of Botox competitors out there; Puretox is another
one that could be approved in 2012. They're all very similar to
Botox, and don't appear to have obvious benefits except perhaps
being cheaper. Other companies are also developing their own
toxins and are in the FDA approval process, so there could be
several of these on the market relatively soon.

BellaSugar: There are a few products out now, like
Sculptra, that provide gradual results. Is that something we'll
see more of in 2012?Dr. Youn: I still think people want immediate
gratification. I'm a big fan of Sculptra, and I use a lot of it
in my practice. But the number of people having Restylane
injections dwarfs the number of people having Sculptra. The trend
is mainly toward less invasiveness and less downtime. Everyone
wants to get surgical results without going under the knife.
Unfortunately, we don't yet have the surgical technology to do
that in every case. Even the results of cool sculpting are
noticeably not the same as those you get with traditional
liposuction, and no one would say that they are.